


rain or shine

by celestial_lights



Category: Persona 5, Persona Series
Genre: Alternate Universe - Post-Canon, Fluff, M/M, Wedding Fluff, Weddings, for the persona 5 wedding zine, in which i attempt to write a traditional shinto wedding
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-06
Updated: 2019-10-06
Packaged: 2020-11-26 05:37:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,992
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20925041
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/celestial_lights/pseuds/celestial_lights
Summary: Yusuke's mouth was dry, he couldn't form the words he wanted, but perhaps there was no possible way he could form his thoughts into words in the first place. Going into this, he had felt confident, perhaps even cocky. But now, with his future husband right in front of him, he was humbled.Nothing could possibly ruin this moment.Yet the pitter-patter sound on the roof, slowly becoming louder and louder, until it became clear there was a downpour outside, said otherwise.(future fic, can be interpreted as canon universe)





	rain or shine

"Ann, I'm freaking out here," Ren said. True to his word, his arms, sticking straight out while his designated shrine assistant put on his _montsuki_, were shaking. He desperately looked at Ann, as if she could provide him an escape.

Ann, who was lavishly decked out in her own floral kimono, makeup already impeccably done, rolled her eyes. The sound of her nails tapping away at her phone filled the room. Ren assumed she was texting Makoto, who was currently with Yusuke and the others at the moment in his own room. The two insisted on having separate rooms within the shrine’s main building to prepare themselves, so they didn’t see each other until right before the ceremony began.

"Ren, how long have you been waiting to marry Yusuke?" Ann said.

"Exactly," Ren said. "What if I screw this up? I mean, we practiced the rituals already, and I think I got everything down, but isn't screwing that up just asking the gods to curse your marriage-"

"Dude, you're rambling again," another voice said from the other side of the room. It came from one Ryuji Sakamoto, who opted out of the traditional attire in favor of a sharp gray suit. His formerly blonde hair was now its natural brown once again, brushed back in a vague attempt at formality. "Chill out. You got this."

"Deep breath, Ren," Ann chimed in.

Ren looked back at her, this time glaring in indignation. "Yeah, easier said than done when you're wearing all of _this_," he said, waving his hands around his _montsuki_ the best he could in the position he was in. His assistant, focused on perfectly tying the deceptively simple-looking knots in the outfit, looked up at him. She seemed slightly annoyed, ultimately adjusting his arms back into their previous position before working on redoing the knot she had previously been working on.

"Oh, um, sorry," Ren sheepishly replied, face flushed from embarrassment. He could hear Ann trying to hide back a snort behind him.

"Hey, you got this. Ya know, I always knew you two would be the first," Ryuji said softly, far from his usual boisterous self. "You two have been ogling each other since high school, and you made long distance work, man. That's pretty fu-" – he paused, realizing where he was - "uh, pretty amazing."

“Ren, honey,” Ann commented. “You're going to be just fine. We'll finish up here, probably meet up with your parents - they are here, right?" A quick nod from Ren, "okay, good, and then you'll get to see Yusuke, and before you know it you'll be married."

He felt warmth radiating through him at the thought. He loved Yusuke more than anything, wanted nothing more than to finally make it official and spend forever with him. But, the prospects of the ceremony up ahead and his fear of making a fool out of himself were eating away at him. Sure, he could finesse extravagance and elegance at the same time when he was Joker, but that was quite a few years ago, and that was a decidedly _different_ form of elegance than this.

Ren wasn't the most traditional of people, but he knew Yusuke wanted to have a ceremony at a Shinto shrine more than anything. If it were up to him, they'd get papers signed at the courthouse and maybe hold a reception with friends afterward. But, he'd do anything to make his love happy, and that included planning out the ceremony he wanted.

If Yusuke wanted it, then Ren wanted it too.

_Just be patient._

"You're all ready," their assistant said as she adjusted the final knot in the front of Ren's _hakama_.

Once she finished and stepped back, Ren gave her a short bow. "Thank you," he said.

A shrine maiden called out from the sliding door. “Amamiya-san, your parents are outside. Would you like a moment alone with them?” she asked.

Ren took a deep breath in, then exhaled. Although their relationship was strained at times, he was still grateful to have them be there to support him.

“I think I’d like that.”

* * *

"Shouldn't he be a little more... anxious about this?" Makoto stage-whispered to Futaba. Both girls, similar to their counterparts with Ren, had been already dressed up, and were merely waiting on the final adjustments to be made to Yusuke's own outfit. In addition, Haru was sitting on the opposite side of the room, occasionally making small talk with the others.

True to Makoto's word, Yusuke seemed perfectly at ease while his own assistant looked over his _montsuki_, checking to make sure everything was perfect and in its place.

"Why would I be anxious? After all, I'm preparing to marry the love of my life," Yusuke remarked, having caught wind of Makoto's whispering. He had a persistent smile on his face, and he seemed more… upbeat than his usual self. His eyes had a particular gleam to them, and he appeared to be glowing in happiness.

Haru, who had in fact been the one to help arrange the entire ceremony for them (who else could book a private wedding at Meiji Jingu when the sakura were in bloom?), stood up from her seat and approached the others.

“I’m so, so happy for you two,” she said.

Yusuke turned toward Haru. “Hmm? Oh, thank you. We really appreciate your efforts in procuring the shrine as well, it’s absolutely incredible being in here,” he said.

Haru mindlessly adjusted the decorative piece holding her hair up. "Of course, it isn't a problem. I can’t begin to thank you two enough for everything you have done to help me over the years. Just seeing you two together brings a smile to my face."

To be quite honest, Yusuke was left speechless. He felt honored that Haru would do so much for not only him and Ren, but for everyone else too. To know that his relationship – something that brought him so much joy and warmth – brought that same feeling to others was nothing short of incredible.

"I... I don't know what to say," he finally replied after a brief moment.

Haru shook her head. “There’s no need to. You two deserve all of this - the wedding of your dreams, and all of the good that follows.”

“Yeah!” Futaba chimed in. “I’ve seen how happy you make Ren, and though I don’t really get _why_,” she continued, only to be met with a jab to the side from Makoto, “ouch, okay, what I was _trying_ to say was that I’m glad you two are happy and also this kinda makes you my brother-in-law so I’ll try to be nicer, I guess.” Although she was completely rambling by the end, she at least seemed to be sincere. He really couldn’t ask for more.

Makoto interrupted before Yusuke could process that entire concept. “By the way, Ann texted me, Ren’s with his parents right now. They said to come out to the main atrium, everyone will meet with us there in about fifteen minutes so we can start the procession,” she said.

Yusuke practically darted out the door, awaiting his fiancé, while the others followed suit.

* * *

This led to their current situation; all of the former Thieves, minus Ren, standing in the building's entrance, talking among themselves. Most, if not all of the attention was focused on Yusuke. Not only was he was slightly overwhelmed by the attention on him, he was also beginning to feel the anxiety from waiting for his future husband (_future husband_) to make his entrance setting in. 

Right as he felt like he was going to explode, Ren entered from his left, his parents on either side of him, and Yusuke forgot how to breathe.

He was stunning. His _montsuki_, with the traditional black _haori_, in contrast to Yusuke's own white one, was sharp and perfect and gods it looked like it was designed for Ren. His hair, normally a mop of curls that Yusuke loved more than anything, was expertly slicked back (even though he preferred the curls, this too was a nice look). He wasn't wearing his glasses either. He had to have put in contacts for the day, Yusuke knew he was blind without them.

And when their eyes met from across the room, it took all of their willpower to not just run into each other’s arms.

Ren was the first to move. He nodded to his parents, grinning from ear to ear as he separated from them and made his way toward Yusuke. They met in the middle of the room and merely held hands while they took each other in.

"You're... wow," Ren finally said, breaking the silence. His hands moved, seemingly on their own, to hold Yusuke’s face. Ren needed to _feel_, to _touch_, so he knew this moment was real and he wasn’t dreaming. He was smiling so wide his face hurt, but he didn’t care.

Yusuke's mouth was dry, he couldn't form the words he wanted, but perhaps there was no possible way he could form his thoughts into words in the first place. Going into this, he had felt confident, perhaps even cocky. But now, with his future husband right in front of him, he was humbled.

Nothing could possibly ruin this moment.

Yet the pitter-patter sound on the roof, slowly becoming louder and louder, until it became clear there was a downpour outside, said otherwise.

Yusuke's face immediately dropped, and he felt a similar sensation in the pit of his stomach. No, not today, why today of all days, it could've literally rained any other day, but-

Ren clearly noticed the shift from joy to anxiety in Yusuke's eyes.

"Honey, it's okay," he began to say, clearly concerned.

"It seems as if I always bring rain with me," Yusuke said, clearly forlorn. "Even on our wedding day."

Everyone else looked among themselves, unsure of what to do next.

Ren's brows furrowed, deep in thought, until his eyes widened when he had a realization.

"Yusuke," he said. He looked up, encouraging Ren to continue.

"I, I read somewhere, when we were planning all of this. Rain. It... I think, in the West, it's supposed to be good luck to have rain on your wedding," Ren continued. It wasn't like _he_ wasn't concerned about his wedding being rained out. He was trying to not only reassure Yusuke, but himself as well. And if some nonsense he read online at two in the morning did it, then so be it.

"We have umbrellas, too," Ann chimed in, being the first of their friends to speak up. "Can't have these fancy outfits ruined, y'know?"

"Plus, Meiji looks gorgeous in the sun and the rain," Haru said.

“Yeah man, we’re just walking outside to the shrine. Most of the ceremony’s inside, right?” Ryuji chimed in.

Ren looked from his friends, to his parents, back to Yusuke. He held onto Yusuke's hand once again, running his thumb over the metal of his engagement ring. "We have a little bit of time, let's see if it passes, okay?"

Yusuke nodded. “Yes, I think that’d be for the best.”

* * *

The fifteen minutes before their ceremony was set to begin seemed to be the longest wait of the couple’s lives. But, it appeared as if things were looking up, as when their slated ceremony time arrived, the downpour from earlier turned into a light mist. It wasn’t quite sunshine, but it was good enough. 

As the shrine maidens, priests, and various others arranged everyone into two lines at the entrance, led by Yusuke and Ren, the couple looked at each other one final time before beginning the march to the actual shrine where their ceremony would be held, clear umbrellas in their hands.

“Are you ready to get married?” Ren asked, clearly amused by his own question. _Of course he would be_, he thought to himself as he tried to hold back a chuckle.

Yusuke grinned. “I’d want nothing more.”

**Author's Note:**

> hi i don't really go to persona 5 anymore these days (stares at 85+ hours in fire emblem three houses) but i got the go-ahead to post this on here and shukita is still one of my favorite ships ever so *dabs*
> 
> i wrote this back in... may? june? it's been a few months. ANYWAY, this piece is featured in the lovely [from this day forward zine](https://persona5weddingzine.bigcartel.com/), which is a charity zine focusing on lgbt+ weddings within the persona 5 universe. our organizers and contributors have been an amazing group of people, and i couldn't have asked to be in a better zine. so s/o to everyone that worked hard to make this happen!
> 
> on another note, i frequently make reference to ren and yusuke's outfits in this fic. i imagined them to wear [traditional men's wedding attire](https://kyotokimono-rental.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/mensgarb.jpg) (link has labels to each part as well!), with the only difference being yusuke's jacket is in white. i did a _ton_ of research going into this fic, so if something is incorrect, well it's already printed now oof.
> 
> if you want to hear me scream about whatever has piqued my interest lately, my twitter is @celestlights!


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